Systems and methods for modifying input detection areas

ABSTRACT

A system, a machine-readable storage medium storing instructions, and a computer-implemented method are described herein to modify a size of one or more input detection areas. A size modifier accesses user interface size data. The user interface size data comprises a size for a first user interface element and a size for a first user input detection area. The size modifier determines a size of a display area of a user device. The size modifier calculates a modified size of the first user interface element. The modified size of the first user interface element is based on the size for the first user interface element and the size of the display area. The size modifier calculates a modified size of the first input detection area based on the size for the first input detection area and a first factor unrelated to the size of the display area.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure generally relates to games and applications ingeneral and, in particular embodiments, to modifying sizes of inputdetection areas that receive inputs for respective user interfaceelements.

BACKGROUND

In many games, there is a virtual world or some other imagined playingspace where a player/user of the game controls one or more playercharacters (herein “character,” “player character,” or “PC”). Playercharacters can be considered in-game representations of the controllingplayer. As used herein, the terms “player,” “user,” “entity,” and“friend” may refer to the in-game player character controlled by thatplayer, user, entity, or friend, unless context suggests otherwise. Thegame display can display a representation of the player character. Agame engine accepts inputs from the player, determines player characteractions, decides outcomes of events and presents the player with a gamedisplay illuminating what happened. In some games, there are multipleplayers, wherein each player controls one or more player characters.

In many computer games, there are various types of in-game assets (aka“rewards” or “loot”) that a player character can obtain within the game.For example, a player character may acquire game points, gold coins,experience points, character levels, character attributes, virtual cash,game keys, or other in-game items of value. In many computer games,there are also various types of in-game obstacles that a player mustovercome to advance within the game. In-game obstacles can includetasks, puzzles, opponents, levels, gates, actions, etc. In some games, agoal of the game may be to acquire certain in-game assets, which canthen be used to complete in-game tasks or to overcome certain in-gameobstacles. For example, a player may be able to acquire a virtual key(i.e., the in-game asset) that can then be used to open a virtual door(i.e., the in-game obstacle).

An electronic social networking system typically operates with one ormore social networking servers providing interaction between users suchthat a user can specify other users of the social networking system as“friends.” A collection of users and the “friend” connections betweenusers can form a social graph that can be traversed to find second,third and more remote connections between users, much like a graph ofnodes connected by edges can be traversed.

Many online computer games are operated on an online social networkingsystem. Such an online social networking system allows both users andother parties to interact with the computer games directly, whether toplay the games or to retrieve game- or user-related information.Internet users may maintain one or more accounts with various serviceproviders, including, for example, online game networking systems andonline social networking systems. Online systems can typically beaccessed using browser clients (e.g., Firefox, Chrome, InternetExplorer).

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a system, accordingto some example embodiments.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a social networkwithin a social graph, according to some embodiments.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating components of a computing device,according to some example embodiments.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating a default user interfacedisplayed in a first display area of a first device, according to someexample embodiments.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating a modified user interfacedisplayed in a second display area of a second device, according to someexample embodiments.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing an example method of modifying sizes ofgame user interface elements, according to some example embodiments.

FIG. 7 is a diagrammatic representation of an example data flow betweenexample components of the example system of FIG. 1, according to someexample embodiments.

FIG. 8 illustrates an example computing system architecture, which maybe used to implement a server or a client system illustrated in FIG. 9,according to some example embodiments.

FIG. 9 illustrates an example network environment, in which variousexample embodiments may operate.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

A system, a machine-readable storage medium storing instructions, and acomputer-implemented method are described herein to modify a size of oneor more input detection areas. In the following description, forpurposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth inorder to provide a thorough understanding of example embodiments. Itwill be evident, however, to one skilled in the art that the presenttechnology may be practiced without these specific details.

A game user interface may be displayed within a display area of adevice. The game user interface includes a game user interface element.The game user interface element represents a functionality. An inputdetection area may be assigned to a location of the game user interface.The input detection area detects input, such as when a finger pressesagainst the display area at the location assigned to the input detectionarea. The detected input triggers performance of the functionality.

An input detection area may be assigned to a location in a game userinterface that is coincident to a display location of the game userinterface element. That is, a coincident input detection area is alignedwith the display location of the game user interface element. In orderto trigger the functionality, a user must press a finger(s) directlywithin the display location of the game user interface element. If theuser decides to play the game via a device with a small display area, asmall version of the game user interface element is generated anddisplayed in the game user interface in order to account for thedevice's small display area. If the coincidence is maintained, the inputdetection area will be small as well. Due to the small input detectionarea, the user may have trouble pressing a finger within the small inputdetection area. In such a case, the coincident input detection area willoften detect the user's finger as outside the boundaries of the displaylocation and the functionality will not be triggered.

A system, a machine-readable storage medium storing instructions, and acomputer-implemented method are described herein to modify a size of oneor more input detection areas. In various embodiments, a size modifieraccesses user interface size data corresponding to display of a userinterface. The user interface size data represents a size for a firstuser interface element and a size for a first user input detection area.The first input detection area receives inputs for the first userinterface element. The size modifier determines a size of a display areaof a user device. The size modifier calculates a modified size of thefirst user interface element for display of the user interface on theuser device. The modified size of the first user interface element isbased at least on the size for the first user interface element and thesize of the display area. The size modifier calculates a modified sizeof the first input detection area for display of the user interface onthe user device. The modified size of the first input detection area isbased at least on the size for the first input detection area and afirst factor unrelated to the size of the display area.

The size modifier accesses user interface size data and utilizes theuser interface size data to calculate a modified size of a userinterface element(s) and a modified size of an input detection area(s).The user interface size data includes default sizes for each userinterface element and default sizes for each input detection area. Insome embodiments, a default size for a first type of user interfaceelement may be different than a default size for a second type of userinterface element. In various embodiments, a default size for an inputdetection area that corresponds to the first type of user interfaceelement may be different than a default size for an input detection areathat corresponds to the second type of user interface element.

The user interface size data may also include one or more displayratios. A display ratio indicates a proportional relationship between asize of a user interface element and a size (or dimensions) of a displayarea of a user device. A display ratio can also indicate a proportionalrelationship between a size of an input detection area and a size of adisplay area of a user device. A display ratio can also indicate aproportional relationship between a size of an input detection area andits corresponding user interface element.

The user interface size data may also include a spacing requirementdescribing an amount of space between user interface elements displayedin a user interface. The spacing requirement may also describe an amountof space between user input detection areas. In some embodiments, thespacing requirement may be proportionally related to a size of a displayarea of a device. The user interface size data may also includepreviously-calculated sizes of one or more user interface elements andpreviously-calculated sizes of one or more input detection areas.

The size modifier modifies the size of an input detection area accordingto one or more factors that are unrelated to a size of a display area ofa user device. In some embodiments, a proportionally smaller version ofa user interface element is calculated for a user interface to accountfor a small display area of a user device. However, the size modifiercalculates a modified size of an input detection area that isproportionally larger than the modified size of the user interfaceelement with respect to the small display area. The size modifiercalculates such a modified size of the input detection area so that auser's finger may be more easily detected as input.

Proportional modification of either a user interface element and/or auser input detection area need not be the same between any axes. Thatis, for example, the modification may occur at a greater extent on oneaxis as opposed to another. While in some embodiments, the extent of amodification between multiple axes may occur at a ratio of 1:1, otherembodiments may not exceed phi:1. In other embodiments, a maximumdifference in the extent of the modification between axes may be 2:1.

In some embodiments, a first input detection area may have a modifiedsize that is different than a modified size of a second input detectionarea in a user interface. In various embodiments, a size of an inputdetection area may be modified based on a priority and/or a function ofthe corresponding user interface element. In other embodiments, a sizeof an input detection area may be modified based on at least onecharacteristic of a player.

It is understood that various embodiments include the generation ofmodules to cause any component(s) of a social networking system, gamenetworking system (i.e. online gaming system) and/or a client system toperform any and all of the actions, operations and steps describedherein. It is further understood that, in various embodiments, any ofthe one or more modules may comprise source code that, when compiled bya computing device(s), creates object code that causes the computingdevice(s) to perform the various actions, operations and steps describedherein.

It is further understood that embodiments described herein are notlimited to being implemented with online games, but rather, can beimplemented for any kind of online environment.

It is understood that the invention need not be applied to an onlineenvironment at all, as it can apply to an offline mode, or both onlineor offline mode when used with dynamic changes in ratios from, forexample, a stored file based on the server's indication of the desireduser experience.

Social Network Systems and Game Networking Systems

FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a system for implementing variousdisclosed embodiments. In particular embodiments, system 100 comprisesplayer 101, social networking system 120 a, game networking system 120 b(i.e. online gaming system), client system 130, and network 160. Thecomponents of system 100 can be connected to each other in any suitableconfiguration, using any suitable type of connection. The components maybe connected directly or over a network 160, which may be any suitablenetwork. For example, one or more portions of network 160 may be an adhoc network, an intranet, an extranet, a virtual private network (VPN),a local area network (LAN), a wireless LAN (WLAN), a wide area network(WAN), a wireless WAN (WWAN), a metropolitan area network (MAN), aportion of the Internet, a portion of the Public Switched TelephoneNetwork (PSTN), a cellular telephone network, another type of network,or a combination of two or more such networks.

Social networking system 120 a (i.e. social network system) is anetwork-addressable computing system that can host one or more socialgraphs. Social networking system 120 a can generate, store, receive, andtransmit social networking data. Social networking system 120 a can beaccessed by the other components of system 100 either directly or vianetwork 160. Game networking system 120 b is a network-addressablecomputing system that can host one or more online games. Game networkingsystem 120 b can generate, store, receive, and transmit game-relateddata, such as, for example, game account data, game input, game statedata, and game displays. Game networking system 120 b can be accessed bythe other components of system 100 either directly or via network 160.Player 101 may use client system 130 to access, send data to, andreceive data from social networking system 120 a and game networkingsystem 120 b. Client system 130 can access social networking system 120a or game networking system 120 b directly, via network 160, or via athird-party system. As an example and not by way of limitation, clientsystem 130 may access game networking system 120 b via social networkingsystem 120 a. Client system 130 can be any suitable computing device,such as a personal computer, laptop, cellular phone, smart phone,computing tablet, etc.

Although FIG. 1 illustrates a particular number of players 101, socialnetwork systems 120 a, game networking systems 120 b, client systems130, and networks 160, this disclosure contemplates any suitable numberof players 101, social network systems 120 a, game networking systems120 b, client systems 130, and networks 160. As an example and not byway of limitation, system 100 may include one or more game networkingsystems 120 b and no social networking systems 120 a. As another exampleand not by way of limitation, system 100 may include a system thatcomprises both social networking system 120 a and game networking system120 b. Moreover, although FIG. 1 illustrates a particular arrangement ofplayer 101, social networking system 120 a, game networking system 120b, client system 130, and network 160, this disclosure contemplates anysuitable arrangement of player 101, social networking system 120 a, gamenetworking system 120 b, client system 130, and network 160.

The components of system 100 may be connected to each other using anysuitable connections 110. For example, suitable connections 110 includewireline (such as, for example, Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) or DataOver Cable Service Interface Specification (DOCSIS)), wireless (such as,for example, Wi-Fi or Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access(WiMAX)) or optical (such as, for example, Synchronous Optical Network(SONET) or Synchronous Digital Hierarchy (SDH)) connections. Inparticular embodiments, one or more connections 110 each include an adhoc network, an intranet, an extranet, a VPN, a LAN, a WLAN, a WAN, aWWAN, a MAN, a portion of the Internet, a portion of the PSTN, acellular telephone network, or another type of connection, or acombination of two or more such connections. Connections 110 need notnecessarily be the same throughout system 100. One or more firstconnections 110 may differ in one or more respects from one or moresecond connections 110. Although FIG. 1 illustrates particularconnections between player 101, social networking system 120 a, gamenetworking system 120 b, client system 130, and network 160, thisdisclosure contemplates any suitable connections between player 101,social networking system 120 a, game networking system 120 b, clientsystem 130, and network 160. As an example and not by way of limitation,in particular embodiments, client system 130 may have a directconnection to social networking system 120 a or game networking system120 b, bypassing network 160.

Online Games and Game Systems Game Networking Systems

In an online computer game, a game engine manages the game state of thegame. Game state comprises all game play parameters, including playercharacter state, non-player character (NPC) state, in-game object state,game world state (e.g., internal game clocks, game environment), andother game play parameters. Each player 101 controls one or more playercharacters (PCs). The game engine controls all other aspects of thegame, including non-player characters (NPCs), and in-game objects. Thegame engine also manages game state, including player character statefor currently active (online) and inactive (offline) players.

An online game can be hosted by game networking system 120 b (i.e.online gaming system), which includes a Notification Generator 150 thatperforms operations according to embodiments as described herein. Thegame networking system 120 b can be accessed using any suitableconnection with a suitable client system 130. A player may have a gameaccount on game networking system 120 b, wherein the game account cancontain a variety of information associated with the player (e.g., theplayer's personal information, financial information, purchase history,player character state, game state). In some embodiments, a player mayplay multiple games on game networking system 120 b, which may maintaina single game account for the player with respect to all the games, ormultiple individual game accounts for each game with respect to theplayer. In some embodiments, game networking system 120 b can assign aunique identifier to each player 101 of an online game hosted on gamenetworking system 120 b. Game networking system 120 b can determine thata player 101 is accessing the online game by reading the user's cookies,which may be appended to HTTP requests transmitted by client system 130,and/or by the player 101 logging onto the online game.

In particular embodiments, player 101 may access an online game andcontrol the game's progress via client system 130 (e.g., by inputtingcommands to the game at the client device). Client system 130 candisplay the game interface, receive inputs from player 101, transmittinguser inputs or other events to the game engine, and receive instructionsfrom the game engine. The game engine can be executed on any suitablesystem (such as, for example, client system 130, social networkingsystem 120 a, or game networking system 120 b). As an example and not byway of limitation, client system 130 can download client components ofan online game, which are executed locally, while a remote game server,such as game networking system 120 b, provides backend support for theclient components and may be responsible for maintaining applicationdata of the game, processing the inputs from the player, updating and/orsynchronizing the game state based on the game logic and each input fromthe player, and transmitting instructions to client system 130. Asanother example and not by way of limitation, each time player 101provides an input to the game through the client system 130 (such as,for example, by typing on the keyboard or clicking the mouse of clientsystem 130), the client components of the game may transmit the player'sinput to game networking system 120 b.

Storing Game-Related Data

A database may store any data relating to game play within a gamenetworking system 120 b. The database may include database tables forstoring a player game state that may include information about theplayer's virtual gameboard, the player's character, or othergame-related information. For example, player game state may includevirtual objects owned or used by the player, placement positions forvirtual structural objects in the player's virtual gameboard, and thelike. Player game state may also include in-game obstacles of tasks forthe player (e.g., new obstacles, current obstacles, completed obstacles,etc.), the player's character attributes (e.g., character health,character energy, amount of coins, amount of cash or virtual currency,etc.), and the like.

The database may also include database tables for storing a playerprofile that may include user-provided player information that isgathered from the player, the player's client device, or an affiliatesocial network. The user-provided player information may include theplayer's demographic information, the player's location information(e.g., a historical record of the player's location during game play asdetermined via a GPS-enabled device or the internet protocol (IP)address for the player's client device), the player's localizationinformation (e.g., a list of languages chosen by the player), the typesof games played by the player, and the like.

In some example embodiments, the player profile may also include derivedplayer information that may be determined from other information storedin the database. The derived player information may include informationthat indicates the player's level of engagement with the virtual game,the player's friend preferences, the player's reputation, the player'spattern of game-play, and the like. For example, the game networkingsystem 120 b may determine the player's friend preferences based onplayer attributes that the player's first-degree friends have in common,and may store these player attributes as friend preferences in theplayer profile. Furthermore, the game networking system 120 b maydetermine reputation-related information for the player based onuser-generated content (UGC) from the player or the player's N^(th)degree friends (e.g., in-game messages or social network messages), andmay store this reputation-related information in the player profile. Thederived player information may also include information that indicatesthe player's character temperament during game play, anthropologicalmeasures for the player (e.g., tendency to like violent games), and thelike.

In some example embodiments, the player's level of engagement may beindicated from the player's performance within the virtual game. Forexample, the player's level of engagement may be determined based on oneor more of the following: a play frequency for the virtual game or for acollection of virtual games; an interaction frequency with other playersof the virtual game; a response time for responding to in-game actionsfrom other players of the virtual game; and the like.

In some example embodiments, the player's level of engagement mayinclude a likelihood value indicating a likelihood that the player mayperform a desired action. For example, the player's level of engagementmay indicate a likelihood that the player may choose a particularenvironment, or may complete a new challenge within a determinableperiod of time from when it is first presented to him.

In some example embodiments, the player's level of engagement mayinclude a likelihood that the player may be a leading player of thevirtual game (a likelihood to lead). The game networking system 120 bmay determine the player's likelihood to lead value based on informationfrom other players that interact with this player. For example, the gamenetworking system 120 b may determine the player's likelihood to leadvalue by measuring the other players' satisfaction in the virtual game,measuring their satisfaction from their interaction with the player,measuring the game-play frequency for the other players in relation totheir interaction frequency with the player (e.g., the ability for theplayer to retain others), and/or the like.

The game networking system 120 b may also determine the player'slikelihood to lead value based on information about the player'sinteractions with others and the outcome of these interactions. Forexample, the game networking system 120 b may determine the player'slikelihood to lead value by measuring the player's amount of interactionwith other players (e.g., as measured by a number of challenges that theplayer cooperates with others, and/or an elapsed time duration relatedthereto), the player's amount of communication with other players, thetone of the communication sent or received by the player, and/or thelike. Moreover, the game networking system 120 b may determine theplayer's likelihood to lead value based on determining a likelihood forthe other players to perform a certain action in response to interactingor communicating with the player and/or the player's virtualenvironment.

It is understood that any of the types of data discussed herein (i.e.level of engagement, calculations determining a likelihood, etc.) can bestored locally on a computing device to facilitate an offline play modethat utilizes modified user interface elements and input detectionareas.

Game Systems, Social Networks, and Social Graphs

In an online multiplayer game, players may control player characters(PCs), a game engine controls non-player characters (NPCs) and gamefeatures, and the game engine also manages player character state andgame state and tracks the state for currently active (i.e., online)players and currently inactive (i.e., offline) players. A playercharacter can have a set of attributes and a set of friends associatedwith the player character. As used herein, the term “player characterstate” can refer to any in-game characteristic of a player character,such as location, assets, levels, condition, health, status, inventory,skill set, name, orientation, affiliation, specialty, and so on. Playercharacters may be displayed as graphical avatars within a user interfaceof the game. In other implementations, no avatar or other graphicalrepresentation of the player character is displayed. Game stateencompasses the notion of player character state and refers to anyparameter value that characterizes the state of an in-game element, suchas a non-player character, a virtual object (such as a wall or castle),etc. The game engine may use player character state to determine theoutcome of game events, sometimes also considering set or randomvariables. Generally, a player character's probability of having a morefavorable outcome is greater when the player character has a betterstate. For example, a healthier player character is less likely to diein a particular encounter relative to a weaker player character ornon-player character. In some embodiments, the game engine can assign aunique client identifier to each player.

In particular embodiments, player 101 may access particular gameinstances of an online game. A game instance is copy of a specific gameplay area that is created during runtime. In particular embodiments, agame instance is a discrete game play area where one or more players 101can interact in synchronous or asynchronous play. A game instance maybe, for example, a level, zone, area, region, location, virtual space,or other suitable play area. A game instance may be populated by one ormore in-game objects. Each object may be defined within the gameinstance by one or more variables, such as, for example, position,height, width, depth, direction, time, duration, speed, color, and othersuitable variables. A game instance may be exclusive (i.e., accessibleby specific players) or non-exclusive (i.e., accessible by any player).In particular embodiments, a game instance is populated by one or moreplayer characters controlled by one or more players 101 and one or morein-game objects controlled by the game engine. When accessing an onlinegame, the game engine may allow player 101 to select a particular gameinstance to play from a plurality of game instances. Alternatively, thegame engine may automatically select the game instance that player 101will access. In particular embodiments, an online game comprises onlyone game instance that all players 101 of the online game can access.

In particular embodiments, a specific game instance may be associatedwith one or more specific players. A game instance is associated with aspecific player when one or more game parameters of the game instanceare associated with the specific player. As an example and not by way oflimitation, a game instance associated with a first player may be named“First Player's Play Area.” This game instance may be populated with thefirst player's PC and one or more in-game objects associated with thefirst player. In particular embodiments, a game instance associated witha specific player may only be accessible by that specific player. As anexample and not by way of limitation, a first player may access a firstgame instance when playing an online game, and this first game instancemay be inaccessible to all other players. In other embodiments, a gameinstance associated with a specific player may be accessible by one ormore other players, either synchronously or asynchronously with thespecific player's game play. As an example and not by way of limitation,a first player may be associated with a first game instance, but thefirst game instance may be accessed by all first-degree friends in thefirst player's social network. In particular embodiments, the gameengine may create a specific game instance for a specific player whenthat player accesses the game. As an example and not by way oflimitation, the game engine may create a first game instance when afirst player initially accesses an online game, and that same gameinstance may be loaded each time the first player accesses the game. Asanother example and not by way of limitation, the game engine may createa new game instance each time a first player accesses an online game,wherein each game instance may be created randomly or selected from aset of predetermined game instances. In particular embodiments, the setof in-game actions available to a specific player may be different in agame instance that is associated with that player compared to a gameinstance that is not associated with that player. The set of in-gameactions available to a specific player in a game instance associatedwith that player may be a subset, superset, or independent of the set ofin-game actions available to that player in a game instance that is notassociated with him. As an example and not by way of limitation, a firstplayer may be associated with Blackacre Farm in an online farming game.The first player may be able to plant crops on Blackacre Farm. If thefirst player accesses game instance associated with another player, suchas Whiteacre Farm, the game engine may not allow the first player toplant crops in that game instance. However, other in-game actions may beavailable to the first player, such as watering or fertilizing crops onWhiteacre Farm.

In particular embodiments, a game engine can interface with a socialgraph. Social graphs are models of connections between entities (e.g.,individuals, users, contacts, friends, players, player characters,non-player characters, businesses, groups, associations, concepts,etc.). These entities are considered “users” of the social graph; assuch, the terms “entity” and “user” may be used interchangeably whenreferring to social graphs herein. A social graph can have a node foreach entity and edges to represent relationships between entities. Anode in a social graph can represent any entity. In particularembodiments, a unique client identifier can be assigned to each user inthe social graph. This disclosure assumes that at least one entity of asocial graph is a player or player character in an online multiplayergame, though this disclosure any suitable social graph users.

The minimum number of edges required to connect a player (or playercharacter) to another user is considered the degree of separationbetween them. For example, where the player and the user are directlyconnected (one edge), they are deemed to be separated by one degree ofseparation. The user would be a so-called “first-degree friend” of theplayer. Where the player and the user are connected through one otheruser (two edges), they are deemed to be separated by two degrees ofseparation. This user would be a so-called “second-degree friend” of theplayer. Where the player and the user are connected through N edges (orN-1 other users), they are deemed to be separated by N degrees ofseparation. This user would be a so-called “Nth-degree friend.” As usedherein, the term “friend” means only first-degree friends, unlesscontext suggests otherwise.

Within the social graph, each player (or player character) has a socialnetwork. A player's social network includes all users in the socialgraph within N_(max) degrees of the player, where N_(max) is the maximumdegree of separation allowed by the system managing the social graph(such as, for example, social networking system 120 a or game networkingsystem 120 b). In one embodiment, N_(max) equals 1, such that theplayer's social network includes only first-degree friends. In anotherembodiment, N_(max) is unlimited and the player's social network iscoextensive with the social graph.

In particular embodiments, the social graph is managed by gamenetworking system 120 b, which is managed by the game operator. In otherembodiments, the social graph is part of a social networking system 120a managed by a third-party (e.g., Facebook, Friendster, Myspace). In yetother embodiments, player 101 has a social network on both gamenetworking system 120 b and social networking system 120 a, whereinplayer 101 can have a social network on the game networking system 120 bthat is a subset, superset, or independent of the player's socialnetwork on social networking system 120 a. In such combined systems,game network system 120 b can maintain social graph information withedge type attributes that indicate whether a given friend is an “in-gamefriend,” an “out-of-game friend,” or both. The various embodimentsdisclosed herein are operable when the social graph is managed by socialnetworking system 120 a, game networking system 120 b, or both.

FIG. 2 shows an example of a social network within a social graph. Asshown, Player 201 can be associated, connected or linked to variousother users, or “friends,” within the social network 250. Theseassociations, connections or links can track relationships between userswithin the social network 250 and are commonly referred to as online“friends” or “friendships” between users. Each friend or friendship in aparticular user's social network within a social graph is commonlyreferred to as a “node.” For purposes of illustration and not by way oflimitation, the details of social network 250 will be described inrelation to Player 201. As used herein, the terms “player,” “user” and“account” can be used interchangeably and can refer to any user orcharacter in an online game networking system or social networkingsystem. As used herein, the term “friend” can mean any node within aplayer's social network.

As shown in FIG. 2, Player 201 has direct connections with severalfriends. When Player 201 has a direct connection with anotherindividual, that connection is referred to as a first-degree friend. Insocial network 250, Player 201 has two first-degree friends. That is,Player 201 is directly connected to Friend 1 ₁ 211 and Friend 2 ₁ 221.In a social graph, it is possible for individuals to be connected toother individuals through their first-degree friends (i.e., friends offriends). As described above, each edge required to connect a player toanother user is considered the degree of separation. For example, FIG. 2shows that Player 201 has three second-degree friends to which he isconnected via his connection to his first-degree friends. Second-degreeFriend 1 ₂ 212 and Friend 2 ₂ 222 are connected to Player 201 via hisfirst-degree Friend 1 ₁ 211. The limit on the depth of friendconnections, or the number of degrees of separation for associations,that Player 201 is allowed is typically dictated by the restrictions andpolicies implemented by social networking system 120 a.

In various embodiments, Player 201 can have Nth-degree friends connectedto him through a chain of intermediary degree friends as indicated inFIG. 2. For example, Nth-degree Friend 1 _(N) 219 is connected to Player201 via second-degree Friend 3 ₂ 232 and one or more other higher-degreefriends. Various embodiments may take advantage of and utilize thedistinction between the various degrees of friendship relative to Player201.

In particular embodiments, a player (or player character) can have asocial graph within an online multiplayer game that is maintained by thegame engine and another social graph maintained by a separate socialnetworking system. FIG. 2 depicts an example of in-game social network260 and out-of-game social network 250. In this example, Player 201 hasout-of-game connections 255 to a plurality of friends, formingout-of-game social network 250. Here, Friend 1 ₁ 211 and Friend 2 ₁ 221are first-degree friends with Player 201 in his out-of-game socialnetwork 250. Player 201 also has in-game connections 265 to a pluralityof players, forming in-game social network 260. Here, Friend 2 ₁ 221,Friend 3 ₁ 231, and Friend 4 ₁ 241 are first-degree friends with Player201 in his in-game social network 260. In some embodiments, it ispossible for a friend to be in both the out-of-game social network 250and the in-game social network 260. Here, Friend 2 ₁ 221 has both anout-of-game connection 255 and an in-game connection 265 with Player201, such that Friend 2 ₁ 221 is in both Player 201's in-game socialnetwork 260 and Player 201's out-of-game social network 250.

As with other social networks, Player 201 can have second-degree andhigher-degree friends in both his in-game and out of game socialnetworks. In some embodiments, it is possible for Player 201 to have afriend connected to him both in his in-game and out-of-game socialnetworks, wherein the friend is at different degrees of separation ineach network. For example, if Friend 2 ₂ 222 had a direct in-gameconnection with Player 201, Friend 2 ₂ 222 would be a second-degreefriend in Player 201's out-of-game social network, but a first-degreefriend in Player 201's in-game social network. In particularembodiments, a game engine can access in-game social network 260,out-of-game social network 250, or both.

In particular embodiments, the connections in a player's in-game socialnetwork can be formed both explicitly (e.g., users must “friend” eachother) and implicitly (e.g., system observes user behaviors and“friends” users to each other). Unless otherwise indicated, reference toa friend connection between two or more players can be interpreted tocover both explicit and implicit connections, using one or more socialgraphs and other factors to infer friend connections. The friendconnections can be unidirectional or bidirectional. It is also not alimitation of this description that two players who are deemed “friends”for the purposes of this disclosure are not friends in real life (i.e.,in disintermediated interactions or the like), but that could be thecase.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating components of a game networkingsystem, according to some example embodiments. The game networkingsystem 120 b may include a presentation module 310, a generation module320, a calculation module 330, an identification module 340, a displayarea size module 350, a user interface element size module 360, an inputdetection area size module 370 and a factor module 380.

In various example embodiments, the presentation module 310 may be ahardware-implemented module configured to present a user interface thatis receptive to user input to trigger execution of acomputer-implemented multiplayer online game. The user interface may bepresented by the presentation module 310 to a client device 130.Moreover, the computer-implemented multiplayer online game may beplayable via the client device by an associated player. The userinterface presented on the client device 130 may receive user inputsfrom the player associated with the client device 130. For instance, theuser interface may include a control that is operable to triggerexecution of computer-implemented multiplayer online game. Thecomputer-implemented multiplayer online game may have default gamemechanics that govern gameplay according to a default set of game rules.In various example embodiments, the presentation module 310 may befurther configured to present the computer-implemented multiplayeronline game as data to be installed on the client device 130 that isplayable via the client device 130 by the associated player. Forinstance, the computer-implemented multiplayer online game may be anapplication that is available for download from an online applicationstore. Moreover, the user inputs received from the player may be sent assignals from the client device associated with the player.

In various example embodiments, the generation module 320 may be ahardware-implemented module configured to generate the default set ofgame rules that govern gameplay of the computer-implemented multiplayeronline game. The default set of game rules may govern functionality ofthe computer-implemented multiplayer online game including at least oneof asset types available in the multiplayer game, moves available in themultiplayer game, features available in the multiplayer game, andconstraints associated with the multiplayer game.

In various example embodiments, the calculation module 330 may be ahardware-implemented module configured to calculate game statistics andgame usage associated with each type of account that accesses thecomputer-implemented multiplayer online game. The calculation module 330may perform this calculation during each one of the multiple regularlystaggered intervals. Moreover, the calculated game statistics may beassociated with the player. For example, the calculation module 330 maycalculate a game score of the player based on the collected game data.The calculation module 330 may perform the calculation using apre-defined function that uses the collected game data as inputs to thefunction.

In various example embodiments, the identification module 340 may be ahardware-implemented module configured to identify other players thatare connected to the player within a social graph corresponding to theplayer. The social graph may be accessed from the social networkingsystem 120 a under a social network account associated with the player.Moreover, the identified users may each be friends of the player.

In various example embodiments, the display area size module 350 may bea hardware-implemented module that controls, manages and storesinformation related to sizes of display areas of a various user devices.In some embodiments, the display area size module 350 determinesdimensions of a first display area of a first user device for display ofa user interface for a first session of a game. The display area sizemodule 350 further the determines dimensions of a second display area ofa second user device for display of the user interface for a secondsession of the game. The first display area may have a different sizethan the second display area.

In various example embodiments, the user interface element size module360 may be a hardware-implemented module that controls, manages andstores information related to a size of one or more user interfaceelements in the user interface. For the first session of the game, theuser interface element size module 360 calculates a size of the one ormore user interface elements based on the size of the first displayarea. The calculated size of each user interface element can be storedby the user interface element size module 360 as part of user interfacesize data. For the second session of the game, the user interfaceelement size module 360 calculates a modified size of the one or moreuser interface elements based on the user interface size data and thesize of the second display area.

In various example embodiments, the input detection area size module 370may be a hardware-implemented module that controls, manages and storesinformation related to a size of one or more input detection areas inthe user interface. For the first session of the game, the inputdetection area size module 370 calculates a size of the one or moreinput detection area based on various factors unrelated to a size of thefirst display area. In some embodiments, the size of each inputdetection area may be a default size. The calculated size of each inputdetection area can be stored by the input detection area size module 370as part of the user interface size data. For the second session of thegame, the input detection area size module 370 calculates a modifiedsize of the one or more input detection areas based on various factorsunrelated to the size of the second display area.

In various example embodiments, the factor module 380 may be ahardware-implemented module that controls, manages and storesinformation related to one or more factors used for modifying a size ofone or more input detection areas. In some embodiments, the one or morefactors are based at least on a portion of game-related data and/or anyother kind of data described herein. In some embodiments, the one ormore factors are based on user interface element priorities and/orfunctions.

Modifying Input Detection Areas

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating a default user interfacedisplayed in a first display area of a first device, according to someexample embodiments. The block diagram of FIG. 4 illustrates a firstdevice 402 having a display area 404. A default user interface 406 ispresented in the display are 404. The default user interface 406 isassociated with a first session of a game between Player 201 and Friend221. The game user interface 406 includes an indication 201-1, 221-1 ofeach participant (Player 210, Friend 221) in the first session of thegame.

The size modifier calculates a size of each user interface element 408,410 according to a size of the display area 404. The size modifieraccesses and utilizes user interface size data in order to calculate thesize of each user interface element 408, 410. In some embodiments, theuser interface size data includes default sizes for the user interfaceelements 408, 410. In other embodiments, the user interface size dataincludes a display ratio indicating a respective proportionalrelationship between a default size of the user interface elements 408,410 and a size of the display area 404. In various embodiments, the sizemodifier stores the calculated size of each user interface element 408,410 as part of the user interface size data.

The size modifier calculates a size of each input detection area 408-1,410-1. The size modifier accesses and utilizes the user interface sizedata in order to calculate the size of each input detection area 408-1,410-1. In some embodiments, the user interface size data includesdefault sizes for the input detection areas 408-1, 410-1. In otherembodiments, the user interface size data includes a display ratioindicating a respective proportional relationship between the userinterface elements 408, 410 and the input detection areas 408-1, 410-1.In various embodiments, the size modifier stores the calculated size ofeach input detection area 408-1, 410-1 as part of the user interfacesize data.

When a user presses a finger(s) against a portion of the display area404 that is within a boundary of the input detection area 408-1, thedetected input (i.e. pressed finger) initiates a purchase transactionfunction represented by the corresponding user interface element 408.When a user presses a finger(s) against a portion of the display area404 that is within a boundary of the input detection area 410-1, thedetected input (i.e. pressed finger) initiates a cancel functionrepresented by the corresponding user interface element 410.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating a modified user interfacedisplayed in a second display area of a second device, according to someexample embodiments. The block diagram of FIG. 5 illustrates a seconddevice 502 having a display area 504. The display area 504 of the seconddevice 502 is of a different size than the display area 404 of the firstdevice 402.

A modified user interface 506 is presented in the display area 504. Themodified user interface 506 is associated with a second session of thegame between Player 201 and Friend 221. The modified user interface 506includes the indication 201-1, 221-1 for each participant in the secondsession of the game. The modified user interface 506 includes userinterface elements 508, 510. User interface element 508 represents thesame functionality as user interface element 408. User interface element510 represents the same functionality as user interface element 410.

The size modifier calculates a modified size of the user interfaceelement 508 that is different than the previously-calculated size of theuser interface element 408 displayed on the first device 402. The sizemodifier accesses and utilizes the user interface size data to calculatethe modified size of the user interface element 508. The modified sizeof the user interface element 508 is based on the size of the displayarea 504 of the second device 502.

In some embodiments, the modified size of the user interface element 508is based on a default size and a difference between the sizes of thedisplay area 404 of the first device 402 and the display area 504 of thesecond device 502. In other embodiments, the modified size of the userinterface element 508 may be based on the previously-calculated size ofthe user interface element 408 and the difference between the sizes ofthe display area 404 and the display area 504. In various embodiments,the modified size of the user interface element 508 may be based on adisplay ratio and the size of the display area 504. The size modifierstores the modified size of the user interface element 508 as part ofthe user interface size data.

The size modifier calculates a modified size of the user interfaceelement 510 in a manner similar to calculating the modified size of theuser interface element 508. It is understood, that, in some embodiments,the respective modified sizes of the user interface elements 508, 510may be different due to the user interface elements 508, 510 having adifferent default size, a different display ratio, and/or a differentpreviously-calculated size. The size modifier stores the modified sizeof the user interface element 510 as part of the user interface sizedata.

The size modifier calculates a modified size of input detection area508-1 that is different than the previously-calculated size of the inputdetection area 408-1. The size modifier accesses and utilizes the userinterface size data to calculate the modified size of the inputdetection area 508-1. The modified size of the input detection area508-1 is based on a factor that is unrelated to the size of the displayarea 504. The size modifier calculates a modified size of the inputdetection area 510-1 in a manner similar to calculating the modifiedsize of the input detection area 508-1.

In some embodiments, the size modifier calculates the modified size ofthe input detection area 508-1 based on a priority of the “purchase”function. The size modifier modifies a size of the input detection area510-1 based on a priority of the “cancel” function. In variousembodiments, the priority assigned to the purchase” function may behigher than a priority assigned to the “cancel” function.

In some embodiments, the size modifier calculates the modified size ofthe input detection area 508-1 based on at least one characteristic of aparticipant, such as game-related data described herein, in the currentsession.

In some embodiments, the size modifier applies the one or more factorsunrelated to the size of the display area to the user interface sizedata to calculate the modified size of the input detection areas 508-1,510-1. For example, the one or more factors can be applied to defaultsizes, display ratios, and/or spacing requirements.

As illustrated in FIG. 5, the modified input detection area 508-1 isextended to a greater extent towards the modified input detection area510-1, than the modified input detection area 510-1 is extended towardsthe modified input detection area 508-1. That is, the modified inputdetection area 508-1 has a modified size that consumes more of theavailable space between the input detection areas 508-1, 510-1.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing an example method 600 of modifying sizesof game user interface elements, according to some example embodiments.

At operation 610, the size modifier accesses user interface size datacorresponding to display of a user interface. The user interface sizedata includes data that represents a size for a first user interfaceelement and a size for a first user input detection area. The firstinput detection area for receiving at least one input for the first userinterface element. It is understood that the user interface data canfurther include data that represents sizes for multiple user interfaceelements and multiple input detection areas.

At operation 620, the size modifier determines a size of a display areaof a user device. In some embodiments, the size modifier detects achange between a size of a display area of a current user device and asize of a display area of a previously-used user device. In otherembodiments, the size modifier detects a change between a size of adisplay area of a current user device and a default size of a displayarea of a user device.

At operation 630, the size modifier calculates a modified size of thefirst user interface element for display of the user interface on theuser device. The modified size of the first user interface element isbased at least on the size for the first user interface elementrepresented by the user interface size data and the size of the displayarea.

At operation 640, the size modifier calculates a modified size of thefirst input detection area for display of the user interface on the userdevice. The modified size of the first input detection area is based atleast on the size for the first input detection area represented by theuser interface size data and a first factor unrelated to the size of thedisplay area.

Data Flow

FIG. 7 illustrates an example data flow between the components of system700. In particular embodiments, system 700 can include client system730, social networking system 120 a (i.e. social network system), andgame networking system 120 b (i.e. online game system system). Thecomponents of system 700 can be connected to each other in any suitableconfiguration, using any suitable type of connection. The components maybe connected directly or over any suitable network. Client system 730,social networking system 120 a, and game networking system 120 bb caneach have one or more corresponding data stores such as local data store735, social data store 745, and game data store 765, respectively.Social networking system 120 a and game networking system 120 b can alsohave one or more servers that can communicate with client system 730over an appropriate network. Social networking system 120 a and gamenetworking system 120 b can have, for example, one or more internetservers for communicating with client system 730 via the Internet.Similarly, social networking system 120 a and game networking system 120b can have one or more mobile servers for communicating with clientsystem 730 via a mobile network (e.g., GSM, PCS, Wi-Fi, WPAN, etc.). Insome embodiments, one server may be able to communicate with clientsystem 730 over both the Internet and a mobile network. In otherembodiments, separate servers can be used.

Client system 730 can receive and transmit data 723 to and from gamenetworking system 120 b. This data can include, for example, webpages,messages, game inputs, game displays, HTTP packets, data requests,transaction information, updates, and other suitable data. At some othertime, or at the same time, game networking system 120 b can communicatedata 743, 747 (e.g., game state information, game system accountinformation, page info, messages, data requests, updates, etc.) withother networking systems, such as social networking system 120 a (e.g.,Facebook, Myspace, etc.). Client system 730 can also receive andtransmit data 727 to and from social networking system 120 a. This datacan include, for example, webpages, messages, social graph information,social network displays, HTTP packets, data requests, transactioninformation, updates, and other suitable data.

Communication between client system 730, social networking system 120 a,and game networking system 120 b can occur over any appropriateelectronic communication medium or network using any suitablecommunications protocols. For example, client system 730, as well asvarious servers of the systems described herein, may include TransportControl Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) networking stacks to providefor datagram and transport functions. Of course, any other suitablenetwork and transport layer protocols can be utilized.

In addition, hosts or end-systems described herein may use a variety ofhigher layer communications protocols, including client-server (orrequest-response) protocols, such as the HyperText Transfer Protocol(HTTP) and other communications protocols, such as HTTPS, FTP, SNMP,TELNET, and a number of other protocols, may be used. In someembodiments, no protocol may be used and, instead, transfer of raw datamay be utilized via TCP or User Datagram Protocol. In addition, a serverin one interaction context may be a client in another interactioncontext. In particular embodiments, the information transmitted betweenhosts may be formatted as HyperText Markup Language (HTML) documents.Other structured document languages or formats can be used, such as XML,and the like. Executable code objects, such as JavaScript andActionScript, can also be embedded in the structured documents.

In some client-server protocols, such as the use of HTML over HTTP, aserver generally transmits a response to a request from a client. Theresponse may comprise one or more data objects. For example, theresponse may comprise a first data object, followed by subsequentlytransmitted data objects. In particular embodiments, a client requestmay cause a server to respond with a first data object, such as an HTMLpage, which itself refers to other data objects. A client application,such as a browser, will request these additional data objects as itparses or otherwise processes the first data object.

In particular embodiments, an instance of an online game can be storedas a set of game state parameters that characterize the state of variousin-game objects, such as, for example, player character stateparameters, non-player character parameters, and virtual itemparameters. In particular embodiments, game state is maintained in adatabase as a serialized, unstructured string of text data as aso-called Binary Large Object (BLOB). When a player accesses an onlinegame on game networking system 120 b, the BLOB containing the game statefor the instance corresponding to the player can be transmitted toclient system 730 for use by a client-side executed object to process.In particular embodiments, the client-side executable may be aFLASH-based game, which can de-serialize the game state data in theBLOB. As a player plays the game, the game logic implemented at clientsystem 730 maintains and modifies the various game state parameterslocally. The client-side game logic may also batch game events, such asmouse clicks, and transmit these events to game networking system 120 b.Game networking system 120 b may itself operate by retrieving a copy ofthe BLOB from a database or an intermediate memory cache (memcache)layer. Game networking system 120 b can also de-serialize the BLOB toresolve the game state parameters and execute its own game logic basedon the events in the batch file of events transmitted by the client tosynchronize the game state on the server side. Game networking system120 b may then re-serialize the game state, now modified, into a BLOBand pass this to a memory cache layer for lazy updates to a persistentdatabase.

With a client-server environment in which the online games may run, oneserver system, such as game networking system 120 b, may supportmultiple client systems 730. At any given time, there may be multipleplayers at multiple client systems 730 all playing the same online game.In practice, the number of players playing the same game at the sametime may be very large. As the game progresses with each player,multiple players may provide different inputs to the online game attheir respective client systems 730, and multiple client systems 730 maytransmit multiple player inputs and/or game events to game networkingsystem 120 b for further processing. In addition, multiple clientsystems 730 may transmit other types of application data to gamenetworking system 120 b.

In particular embodiments, a computed-implemented game may be atext-based or turn-based game implemented as a series of web pages thatare generated after a player selects one or more actions to perform. Theweb pages may be displayed in a browser client executed on client system730. As an example and not by way of limitation, a client applicationdownloaded to client system 730 may operate to serve a set of webpagesto a player. As another example and not by way of limitation, acomputer-implemented game may be an animated or rendered game executableas a stand-alone application or within the context of a webpage or otherstructured document. In particular embodiments, the computer-implementedgame may be implemented using Adobe Flash-based technologies. As anexample and not by way of limitation, a game may be fully or partiallyimplemented as a SWF object that is embedded in a web page andexecutable by a Flash media player plug-in. In particular embodiments,one or more described webpages may be associated with or accessed bysocial networking system 120 a. This disclosure contemplates using anysuitable application for the retrieval and rendering of structureddocuments hosted by any suitable network-addressable resource orwebsite.

Application event data of a game is any data relevant to the game (e.g.,player inputs). In particular embodiments, each application datum mayhave a name and a value, and the value of the application datum maychange (i.e., be updated) at any time. When an update to an applicationdatum occurs at client system 730, either caused by an action of a gameplayer or by the game logic itself, client system 730 may need to informgame networking system 120 b of the update. For example, if the game isa farming game with a harvest mechanic (such as Zynga FarmVille), anevent can correspond to a player clicking on a parcel of land to harvesta crop. In such an instance, the application event data may identify anevent or action (e.g., harvest) and an object in the game to which theevent or action applies. For illustration purposes and not by way oflimitation, system 700 is discussed in reference to updating amulti-player online game hosted on a network-addressable system (suchas, for example, social networking system 120 a or game networkingsystem 120 b), where an instance of the online game is executed remotelyon a client system 1030, which then transmits application event data tothe hosting system such that the remote game server synchronizes gamestate associated with the instance executed by the client system 1030.

In particular embodiment, one or more objects of a game may berepresented as an Adobe Flash object. Flash may manipulate vector andraster graphics, and supports bidirectional streaming of audio andvideo. “Flash” may mean the authoring environment, the player, or theapplication files. In particular embodiments, client system 1030 mayinclude a Flash client. The Flash client may be configured to receiveand run Flash application or game object code from any suitablenetworking system (such as, for example, social networking system 120 aor game networking system 120 b). In particular embodiments, the Flashclient may be run in a browser client executed on client system 730. Aplayer can interact with Flash objects using client system 730 and theFlash client. The Flash objects can represent a variety of in-gameobjects. Thus, the player may perform various in-game actions on variousin-game objects by make various changes and updates to the associatedFlash objects. In particular embodiments, in-game actions can beinitiated by clicking or similarly interacting with a Flash object thatrepresents a particular in-game object. For example, a player caninteract with a Flash object to use, move, rotate, delete, attack,shoot, or harvest an in-game object. This disclosure contemplatesperforming any suitable in-game action by interacting with any suitableFlash object. In particular embodiments, when the player makes a changeto a Flash object representing an in-game object, the client-executedgame logic may update one or more game state parameters associated withthe in-game object. To ensure synchronization between the Flash objectshown to the player at client system 730, the Flash client may send theevents that caused the game state changes to the in-game object to gamenetworking system 120 b. However, to expedite the processing and hencethe speed of the overall gaming experience, the Flash client may collecta batch of some number of events or updates into a batch file. Thenumber of events or updates may be determined by the Flash clientdynamically or determined by game networking system 120 b based onserver loads or other factors. For example, client system 730 may send abatch file to game networking system 120 b whenever 50 updates have beencollected or after a threshold period of time, such as every minute.

As used herein, the term “application event data” may refer to any datarelevant to a computer-implemented game application that may affect oneor more game state parameters, including, for example and withoutlimitation, changes to player data or metadata, changes to player socialconnections or contacts, player inputs to the game, and events generatedby the game logic. In particular embodiments, each application datum mayhave a name and a value. The value of an application datum may change atany time in response to the game play of a player or in response to thegame engine (e.g., based on the game logic). In particular embodiments,an application data update occurs when the value of a specificapplication datum is changed. In particular embodiments, eachapplication event datum may include an action or event name and a value(such as an object identifier). Thus, each application datum may berepresented as a name-value pair in the batch file. The batch file mayinclude a collection of name-value pairs representing the applicationdata that have been updated at client system 730. In particularembodiments, the batch file may be a text file and the name-value pairsmay be in string format.

In particular embodiments, when a player plays an online game on clientsystem 730, game networking system 120 b may serialize all thegame-related data, including, for example and without limitation, gamestates, game events, user inputs, for this particular user and thisparticular game into a BLOB and stores the BLOB in a database. The BLOBmay be associated with an identifier that indicates that the BLOBcontains the serialized game-related data for a particular player and aparticular online game. In particular embodiments, while a player is notplaying the online game, the corresponding BLOB may be stored in thedatabase. This enables a player to stop playing the game at any timewithout losing the current state of the game the player is in. When aplayer resumes playing the game next time, game networking system 120 bmay retrieve the corresponding BLOB from the database to determine themost-recent values of the game-related data. In particular embodiments,while a player is playing the online game, game networking system 120 bmay also load the corresponding BLOB into a memory cache so that thegame system may have faster access to the BLOB and the game-related datacontained therein.

Systems and Methods

In particular embodiments, one or more described webpages may beassociated with a networking system or networking service. However,alternate embodiments may have application to the retrieval andrendering of structured documents hosted by any type of networkaddressable resource or web site. Additionally, as used herein, a usermay be an individual, a group, or an entity (such as a business or thirdparty application).

FIG. 8 illustrates an example computing system architecture, which maybe used to implement a server 922 or a client system 930 illustrated inFIG. 9. In one embodiment, hardware system 800 comprises a processor802, a cache memory 804, and one or more executable modules and drivers,stored on a tangible computer readable medium, directed to the functionsdescribed herein. Additionally, hardware system 800 may include a highperformance input/output (I/O) bus 806 and a standard I/O bus 808. Ahost bridge 810 may couple processor 802 to high performance I/O bus806, whereas I/O bus bridge 812 couples the two buses 806 and 808 toeach other. A system memory 814 and one or more network/communicationinterfaces 816 may couple to bus 806. Hardware system 800 may furtherinclude video memory (not shown) and a display device coupled to thevideo memory. Mass storage 818 and I/O ports 820 may couple to bus 808.Hardware system 800 may optionally include a keyboard, a pointingdevice, and a display device (not shown) coupled to bus 808.Collectively, these elements are intended to represent a broad categoryof computer hardware systems, including but not limited to generalpurpose computer systems based on the x86-compatible processorsmanufactured by Intel Corporation of Santa Clara, Calif., and thex86-compatible processors manufactured by Advanced Micro Devices (AMD),Inc., of Sunnyvale, California, as well as any other suitable processor.

The elements of hardware system 800 are described in greater detailbelow. In particular, network interface 816 provides communicationbetween hardware system 800 and any of a wide range of networks, such asan Ethernet (e.g., IEEE 802.3) network, a backplane, etc. Mass storage818 provides permanent storage for the data and programming instructionsto perform the above-described functions implemented in servers 422,whereas system memory 814 (e.g., DRAM) provides temporary storage forthe data and programming instructions when executed by processor 802.I/O ports 820 are one or more serial and/or parallel communication portsthat provide communication between additional peripheral devices, whichmay be coupled to hardware system 800.

Hardware system 800 may include a variety of system architectures andvarious components of hardware system 800 may be rearranged. Forexample, cache 804 may be on-chip with processor 802. Alternatively,cache 804 and processor 802 may be packed together as a “processormodule,” with processor 802 being referred to as the “processor core.”Furthermore, certain embodiments of the present disclosure may notrequire nor include all of the above components. For example, theperipheral devices shown coupled to standard I/O bus 808 may couple tohigh performance I/O bus 806. In addition, in some embodiments, only asingle bus may exist, with the components of hardware system 800 beingcoupled to the single bus. Furthermore, hardware system 800 may includeadditional components, such as additional processors, storage devices,or memories.

An operating system manages and controls the operation of hardwaresystem 800, including the input and output of data to and from softwareapplications (not shown). The operating system provides an interfacebetween the software applications being executed on the system and thehardware components of the system. Any suitable operating system may beused, such as the LINUX Operating System, the Apple Macintosh OperatingSystem, available from Apple Computer Inc. of Cupertino, Calif., UNIXoperating systems, Microsoft (r) Windows(r) operating systems, BSDoperating systems, and the like. Of course, other embodiments arepossible. For example, the functions described herein may be implementedin firmware or on an application-specific integrated circuit. Particularembodiments may operate in a wide area network environment, such as theInternet, including multiple network addressable systems.

FIG. 9 illustrates an example network environment, in which variousexample embodiments may operate. Network cloud 960 generally representsone or more interconnected networks, over which the systems and hostsdescribed herein can communicate. Network cloud 960 may includepacket-based wide area networks (such as the Internet), privatenetworks, wireless networks, satellite networks, cellular networks,paging networks, and the like. As FIG. 9 illustrates, particularembodiments may operate in a network environment comprising one or morenetworking systems, such as social networking system 120 a, gamenetworking system 120 b, and one or more client systems 930. Thecomponents of social networking system 120 a and game networking system120 b operate analogously; as such, hereinafter they may be referred tosimply at networking system 920. Client systems 930 are operablyconnected to the network environment via a network service provider, awireless carrier, or any other suitable means.

Networking system 920 is a network addressable system that, in variousexample embodiments, comprises one or more physical servers 922 and datastores 924. The one or more physical servers 922 are operably connectedto computer network 960 via, by way of example, a set of routers and/ornetworking switches 926. In an example embodiment, the functionalityhosted by the one or more physical servers 922 may include web or HTTPservers, FTP servers, as well as, without limitation, webpages andapplications implemented using Common Gateway Interface (CGI) script,PHP Hyper-text Preprocessor (PHP), Active Server Pages (ASP), Hyper TextMarkup Language (HTML), Extensible Markup Language (XML), Java,JavaScript, Asynchronous JavaScript and XML (AJAX), Flash, ActionScript,and the like.

Physical servers 922 may host functionality directed to the operationsof networking system 920. Hereinafter servers 922 may be referred to asserver 922, although server 922 may include numerous servers hosting,for example, networking system 920, as well as other contentdistribution servers, data stores, and databases. Data store 924 maystore content and data relating to, and enabling, operation ofnetworking system 920 as digital data objects. A data object, inparticular embodiments, is an item of digital information typicallystored or embodied in a data file, database, or record. Content objectsmay take many forms, including: text (e.g., ASCII, SGML, HTML), images(e.g., jpeg, tif and gif), graphics (vector-based or bitmap), audio,video (e.g., mpeg), or other multimedia, and combinations thereof.Content object data may also include executable code objects (e.g.,games executable within a browser window or frame), podcasts, etc.Logically, data store 924 corresponds to one or more of a variety ofseparate and integrated databases, such as relational databases andobject-oriented databases, that maintain information as an integratedcollection of logically related records or files stored on one or morephysical systems. Structurally, data store 924 may generally include oneor more of a large class of data storage and management systems. Inparticular embodiments, data store 924 may be implemented by anysuitable physical system(s) including components, such as one or moredatabase servers, mass storage media, media library systems, storagearea networks, data storage clouds, and the like. In one exampleembodiment, data store 924 includes one or more servers, databases(e.g., MySQL), and/or data warehouses. Data store 924 may include dataassociated with different networking system 920 users and/or clientsystems 930.

Client system 930 is generally a computer or computing device includingfunctionality for communicating (e.g., remotely) over a computernetwork. Client system 930 may be a desktop computer, laptop computer,personal digital assistant (PDA), in- or out-of-car navigation system,smart phone or other cellular or mobile phone, or mobile gaming device,among other suitable computing devices. Client system 930 may executeone or more client applications, such as a web browser (e.g., MicrosoftInternet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, Apple Safari, Google Chrome, andOpera), to access and view content over a computer network. Inparticular embodiments, the client applications allow a user of clientsystem 930 to enter addresses of specific network resources to beretrieved, such as resources hosted by networking system 920. Theseaddresses can be Uniform Resource Locators (URLs) and the like. Inaddition, once a page or other resource has been retrieved, the clientapplications may provide access to other pages or records when the user“clicks” on hyperlinks to other resources. By way of example, suchhyperlinks may be located within the webpages and provide an automatedway for the user to enter the URL of another page and to retrieve thatpage.

A webpage or resource embedded within a webpage, which may itselfinclude multiple embedded resources, may include data records, such asplain textual information, or more complex digitally encoded multimediacontent, such as software programs or other code objects, graphics,images, audio signals, videos, and so forth. One prevalent markuplanguage for creating webpages is the Hypertext Markup Language (HTML).Other common web browser-supported languages and technologies includethe Extensible Markup Language (XML), the Extensible Hypertext MarkupLanguage (XHTML), JavaScript, Flash, ActionScript, Cascading Style Sheet(CSS), and, frequently, Java. By way of example, HTML enables a pagedeveloper to create a structured document by denoting structuralsemantics for text and links, as well as images, web applications, andother objects that can be embedded within the page. Generally, a webpagemay be delivered to a client as a static document; however, through theuse of web elements embedded in the page, an interactive experience maybe achieved with the page or a sequence of pages. During a user sessionat the client, the web browser interprets and displays the pages andassociated resources received or retrieved from the website hosting thepage, as well as, potentially, resources from other websites.

When a user at a client system 930 desires to view a particular webpage(hereinafter also referred to as target structured document) hosted bynetworking system 920, the user's web browser, or other documentrendering engine or suitable client application, formulates andtransmits a request to networking system 920. The request generallyincludes a URL or other document identifier as well as metadata or otherinformation. By way of example, the request may include informationidentifying the user, such as a user ID, as well as informationidentifying or characterizing the web browser or operating systemrunning on the user's client computing device 930. The request may alsoinclude location information identifying a geographic location of theuser's client system or a logical network location of the user's clientsystem. The request may also include a timestamp identifying when therequest was transmitted.

Although the example network environment described above and illustratedin FIG. 9 described with respect to social networking system 120 a andgame networking system 120 b, this disclosure encompasses any suitablenetwork environment using any suitable systems. As an example and not byway of limitation, the network environment may include online mediasystems, online reviewing systems, online search engines, onlineadvertising systems, or any combination of two or more such systems.

Furthermore, the above-described elements and operations can becomprised of instructions that are stored on non-transitory storagemedia. The instructions can be retrieved and executed by a processingsystem. Some examples of instructions are software, program code, andfirmware. Some examples of non-transitory storage media are memorydevices, tape, disks, integrated circuits, and servers. The instructionsare operational when executed by the processing system to direct theprocessing system to operate in accord with the disclosure. The term“processing system” refers to a single processing device or a group ofinter-operational processing devices. Some examples of processingdevices are integrated circuits and logic circuitry. Those skilled inthe art are familiar with instructions, computers, and storage media.

Miscellaneous

One or more features from any embodiment may be combined with one ormore features of any other embodiment without departing from the scopeof the disclosure.

A recitation of “a”, “an,” or “the” is intended to mean “one or more”unless specifically indicated to the contrary. In addition, it is to beunderstood that functional operations, such as “awarding”, “locating”,“permitting” and the like, are executed by game application logic thataccesses, and/or causes changes to, various data attribute valuesmaintained in a database or other memory.

The present disclosure encompasses all changes, substitutions,variations, alterations, and modifications to the example embodimentsherein that a person having ordinary skill in the art would comprehend.Similarly, where appropriate, the appended claims encompass all changes,substitutions, variations, alterations, and modifications to the exampleembodiments herein that a person having ordinary skill in the art wouldcomprehend.

For example, the methods, game features and game mechanics describedherein may be implemented using hardware components, softwarecomponents, and/or any combination thereof By way of example, whileembodiments of the present disclosure have been described as operatingin connection with a networking website, various embodiments of thepresent disclosure can be used in connection with any communicationsfacility that supports web applications. Furthermore, in someembodiments the term “web service” and “website” may be usedinterchangeably and additionally may refer to a custom or generalizedAPI on a device, such as a mobile device (e.g., cellular phone, smartphone, personal GPS, personal digital assistance, personal gamingdevice, etc.), that makes API calls directly to a server. Still further,while the embodiments described above operate with business-relatedvirtual objects (such as stores and restaurants), the invention can beapplied to any in-game asset around which a harvest mechanic isimplemented, such as a virtual stove, a plot of land, and the like. Thespecification and drawings are, accordingly, to be regarded in anillustrative rather than a restrictive sense. It will, however, beevident that various modifications and changes may be made thereuntowithout departing from the broader spirit and scope of the disclosure asset forth in the claims and that the disclosure is intended to cover allmodifications and equivalents within the scope of the following claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A computer-implemented method, comprising:accessing user interface size data corresponding to display of a userinterface, the user interface size data comprising a size for a firstuser interface element and a size for a first user input detection area,the first input detection area for receiving at least one input for thefirst user interface element; determining a size of a display area of auser device; calculating a modified size of the first user interfaceelement for display of the user interface on the user device, themodified size of the first user interface element based at least on thesize for the first user interface element and the size of the displayarea; and in an automated operation using one more processors,calculating a modified size of the first input detection area fordisplay of the user interface on the user device, the modified size ofthe first input detection area based at least on the size for the firstinput detection area and a first factor unrelated to the size of thedisplay area.
 2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein theuser interface size data further comprises a size for a second userinterface element and a size for a second user input detection area, thesecond user input detection area for receiving at least one input forthe second user interface element; the computer-implemented methodfurther comprises: calculating a modified size of the second userinterface element for display of the user interface on the user device,the modified size of the second user interface element based at least onthe size for the second user interface element and the size of thedisplay area; and in an automated operation using one more processors,calculating a modified size of the second input detection area fordisplay of the user interface on the user device, the modified size ofthe second input detection area based at least on the size for thesecond input detection area and a second factor unrelated to the size ofthe display area, the first factor different than the second factor. 3.The computer-implemented method of claim 2, wherein the modified size ofthe first input detection area is different than the modified size ofthe second input detection area.
 4. The computer-implemented method ofclaim 2, wherein the first factor is based on a first functionrepresented by the first user interface element; and wherein the secondfactor is based on a second function represented by the second userinterface element, the first function different than the secondfunction.
 5. The computer-implemented method of claim 4, wherein thefirst function initiates a payment transaction based on input detectedin the first user input detection area.
 6. The computer-implementedmethod of claim 2, wherein the first factor is based on a first priorityassigned to the first user interface element; and wherein the secondfactor is based on a second priority assigned to the second userinterface element, the first priority different than the secondfunction.
 7. The computer-implemented method of claim 2, wherein thefirst factor is based at least on a first characteristic of a user; andwherein the second factor is based at least on a second characteristicof the user, the first characteristic different than the secondcharacteristic.
 8. A machine-readable storage medium storinginstructions which, when executed by one or more processors, cause theone or more processors to perform operations comprising: accessing userinterface size data corresponding to display of a user interface, theuser interface size data comprising a size for a first user interfaceelement and a size for a first user input detection area, the firstinput detection area for receiving at least one input for the first userinterface element; determining a size of a display area of a userdevice; calculating a modified size of the first user interface elementfor display of the user interface on the user device, the modified sizeof the first user interface element based at least on the size for thefirst user interface element and the size of the display area; and in anautomated operation using one more processors, calculating a modifiedsize of the first input detection area for display of the user interfaceon the user device, the modified size of the first input detection areabased at least on the size for the first input detection area and afirst factor unrelated to the size of the display area.
 9. Themachine-readable storage medium of claim 8, wherein the user interfacesize data further comprises a size for a second user interface elementand a size for a second user input detection area, the second user inputdetection area for receiving at least one input for the second userinterface element; the operations further comprising: calculating amodified size of the second user interface element for display of theuser interface on the user device, the modified size of the second userinterface element based at least on the size for the second userinterface element and the size of the display area; and in an automatedoperation using one more processors, calculating a modified size of thesecond input detection area for display of the user interface on theuser device, the modified size of the second input detection area basedat least on the size for the second input detection area and a secondfactor unrelated to the size of the display area, the first factordifferent than the second factor.
 10. The machine-readable storagemedium of claim 9, wherein the modified size of the first inputdetection area is different than the modified size of the second inputdetection area.
 11. The machine-readable storage medium of claim 9,wherein the first factor is based on a first function represented by thefirst user interface element; and wherein the second factor is based ona second function represented by the second user interface element, thefirst function different than the second function.
 12. Themachine-readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the first functioninitiates a payment transaction based on input detected in the firstuser input detection area.
 13. The machine-readable storage medium ofclaim 9, wherein the first factor is based on a first priority assignedto the first user interface element; and wherein the second factor isbased on a second priority assigned to the second user interfaceelement, the first priority different than the second function.
 14. Themachine-readable storage medium of claim 9, wherein the first factor isbased at least on a first characteristic of a user; and wherein thesecond factor is based at least on a second characteristic of the user,the first characteristic different than the second characteristic.
 15. Acomputer system comprising: a processor; a memory device holding aninstruction set executable on the processor to cause the computer systemto perform operations comprising: accessing user interface size datacorresponding to display of a user interface, the user interface sizedata comprising a size for a first user interface element and a size fora first user input detection area, the first input detection area forreceiving at least one input for the first user interface element;determining a size of a display area of a user device; calculating amodified size of the first user interface element for display of theuser interface on the user device, the modified size of the first userinterface element based at least on the size for the first userinterface element and the size of the display area; and in an automatedoperation using one more processors, calculating a modified size of thefirst input detection area for display of the user interface on the userdevice, the modified size of the first input detection area based atleast on the size for the first input detection area and a first factorunrelated to the size of the display area.
 16. The computer system ofclaim 15, wherein the user interface size data further comprises a sizefor a second user interface element and a size for a second user inputdetection area, the second user input detection area for receiving atleast one input for the second user interface element; the operationsfurther comprising: calculating a modified size of the second userinterface element for display of the user interface on the user device,the modified size of the second user interface element based at least onthe size for the second user interface element and the size of thedisplay area; and in an automated operation using one more processors,calculating a modified size of the second input detection area fordisplay of the user interface on the user device, the modified size ofthe second input detection area based at least on the size for thesecond input detection area and a second factor unrelated to the size ofthe display area, the first factor different than the second factor. 17.The computer system of claim 16, wherein the modified size of the firstinput detection area is different than the modified size of the secondinput detection area.
 18. The computer system of claim 16, wherein thefirst factor is based on a first function represented by the first userinterface element, wherein the first function initiates a paymenttransaction based on input detected in the first user input detectionarea; and wherein the second factor is based on a second functionrepresented by the second user interface element, the first functiondifferent than the second function.
 19. The computer system of claim 16,wherein the first factor is based on a first priority assigned to thefirst user interface element; and wherein the second factor is based ona second priority assigned to the second user interface element, thefirst priority different than the second function.
 20. The computersystem of claim 16, wherein the first factor is based at least on afirst characteristic of a user; and wherein the second factor is basedat least on a second characteristic of the user, the firstcharacteristic different than the second characteristic.
 21. Acomputer-implemented method, comprising: calculating a modified size ofa first user interface element for display of a user interface on a userdevice, the modified size of the first user interface element based atleast on a previously calculated size of the first user interfaceelement and a size of a display area of the user device; and in anautomated operation using one more processors, calculating a modifiedsize of a first input detection area for display of the user interfaceon the user device, the modified size of the first input detection areabased at least on a previously calculated size of the first inputdetection area and a first factor unrelated to the size of the displayarea, the first input detection area for receiving at least one inputfor the first user interface element.